Hello, my name is David Beall and I am a photographer based in Los Angeles, California. 

What is my project?

To travel back to Japan and finish photography for my photo book project that started in 2006. It's photographing the old traditions against modern Japan. Temples against skyscrapers, 1000 year-old gardens against bustling city streets. Real-life images, beyond the cliche ideas that inundate our perception of the country. Enduring, centuries old traditions amidst the cutting edge, technology driven world makes it almost an opposite culture to my own in the United States, where the past is not that old and is easily and often forgotten. This trip will include photographing street festivals, staying overnight in a Buddhist temple, and then onto Kyoto, Kamakura, and finally Tokyo. 

Why am I doing this project in the first place?

In 1991, I went to Japan as a high school exchange student and that experience forever changed my life. I had the fortune of living with an incredible host-family that wanted to share as completely as they could, the "real" Japan.  I was in a small city outside of Nagoya in Aichi prefecture called Okazaki. I was able to see city life but, more importantly, I saw and experienced rural life, the traditional life of rice farming at the old family home in the mountains and that's what grabbed hold of me and never let go. It truly became a second home for me and they became my second family.  I met so many wonderful people and got a glimpse into the history of Japan, as much as I could in one short summer. However, I left at the end feeling like I had only barely scratched the surface.  I knew I had to return someday, but I did not know when that would happen. 

When I finally returned to Japan in 2006, after 15 years, I began this photographic project in order to capture the essence of the Japan I know, away from the stereotypes, where the old and the new coexist so peacefully. Highlighting the details most visitors don't see but yet are what make Japan such an enchanting and amazing country. It's incredible to be in a place where old traditions are so integral in modern life that they really are not "old", rather, they're just the way of life. 

What's the money for?

The money raised through your pledges will be used mainly for my travel expenses as well as towards the initial completion of the book design.  For further insight into my photography for this project, please visit my website at www.davidbeallphoto.com .

Thank you so much for your support!